Griffins
|upkeep_cost = |num_figures = |moves = |melee = * |defense = |resist = * |hits = |abilities = Armor Piercing First Strike }} Griffins are a type of Normal Unit. This unit is unique to the Nomad Race, and can only be built in Nomad towns, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain a Fantastic Stable for this to be possible. Griffins are airborne shock-cavalry, and are some of the most powerful Normal Units in the game. They are both strong and sturdy, allowing them to effectively do combat with a wide range of units, including some Fantastic Creatures. Griffins utilize their speed and Flying ability to pick out their targets and eliminate them. Voluntary Melee Attacks initiated by Griffins utilize First Strike, possibly wiping out an enemy unit before it can even react. Griffins are exceptionally useful against well-armored targets, as their attack is Armor Piercing and can make short work of such targets. Griffins will almost always have at least one by default ("Regular"). This makes them even stronger than described above, and they'll just keep getting stronger as more and more is accumulated. Griffins require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically. Unit Properties Physical Description Griffins are unusual creatures, a hybrid between two animals. A Griffin has the body of a lion, armed with sharp claws on its four legs, a pair of great eagle wings, and the head and sharp beak of an eagle as well. Each creature is mounted by a human rider, who directs the beast's attacks in combat. Griffins are bred for battle, and find the taste of flesh to be quite palatable. Griffins are a , though containing only when fully healed. Attack Properties The Griffins have the strongest Melee Attack of all Nomad Normal Units. Not only does this attack cause significant damage, but it can also Pierce Armor, and benefits from First Strike when used properly. Each Griffin's Melee Attack has a strength of by default. However, Griffins created from a town always receive at least one free , giving them each. With this score, each Griffin delivers an average damage output of per attack, a very high output for a Normal Unit. With both attacking simultaneously, the results are quite impressive on their own. Furthermore, Griffins possess the Armor Piercing ability. Whenever they engage in Melee combat with any enemy unit, the enemy's Defense score is temporarily halved. In other words, the enemy gets to make only half as many Defense rolls as it normally would. Thus, Griffins can effectively engage some the most well-armored enemies in the game (possibly even well-equipped Heroes) and still apply at least some damage to them. Naturally, enemies with low armor ratings to begin with will generally suffer the full force of the attack. Finally, when Griffins make a voluntary Melee Attack against an enemy unit, they utilize a First Strike ability. This means that instead of delivering their regular Melee Damage simultaneously with the enemy's Counter Attack, the Griffins' Melee Damage is delivered before the enemy can retaliate. In other words, any enemy killed by the First Strike does not get to make its Counter Attack at all, though it might still get to use a Gaze Attack if it possesses one. Note that while Armor Piercing is always in effect, the Griffins may not use their First Strike when Counter Attacking to an enemy's assault. This means that they will only deliver Melee Damage to their enemies, and will do so at the end of the battle sequence. Defense Properties Griffins are the best-armored units in the Nomad army (and some of the most heavily-armored Normal Units in the game) possessing a default Defense score of . This allows them to block about from any incoming attack. This should protect the Griffins from most enemy Normal Units. Furthermore, Griffins are also very healthy, with each creature having , for a total of per unit. Together with its high Defense score, this unit has roughly as much survivability as a low-tier Fantastic Unit. Even damage that gets through the Griffins' armor will take some time to kill these creatures! Finally, Griffins possess a higher Resistance score than most other Normal Units. Their default Resistance is , but since Griffins almost always have at least one free upon creation, this is raised to . It is enough to save the Griffins from Curses and other ill effects fairly often, and with additional Experience this unit can even become immune to some spells and effects. Other Properties Griffins are Flying creatures and are reasonably fast-moving. They have a Movement Allowance of , which allows them to travel fairly rapidly both on the overland map and during combat. This is particularly important in combat, as the unit requires speed to fully utilize its First Strike capability, and to reach the most worthwhile prey in short order. Basic Strategy Griffins are some of the strongest Normal Units in the game. In the Nomad army, they serve as shock cavalry to tear apart enemy units. While the Griffins fight, other Nomad units provide Ranged Attacks or other support. Griffins are strong enough to take out enemy low-tier Fantastic Units with ease in one-on-one combat, not to mention the overwhelming majority of Normal Units. With Experience, proper use of First Strike, and/or several Griffins units operating together, it should be possible to engage and defeat even stronger Fantastic Creatures and experienced/well-equipped Heroes. Remember that Armor Piercing attacks means that heavily-armored enemies are much more susceptible than normal to this unit's attack! Griffins will only maximize their offensive capabilities when attacking voluntarily. Griffins can utilize their First Strike to cause severe damage to an enemy unit before it even gets a chance to fight back. This is very important in order to keep the Griffins alive, since they are somewhat fragile considering their otherwise-respectable strength. For the same reason, it's important to try and prevent the enemy from attacking Griffins on its own terms. When they are Counter Attacking, Griffins do not get to use their First Strike, meaning they would have to rely on their to survive. Fortunately, Griffins are Flying creatures, and thus can't be attacked in Melee by most enemy units, and their Hit Points pool is large enough to allow them to absorb some serious damage. Have your Griffins charge into an enemy unit, killing off a good number of straight away. Those fallen enemy figures do not get to deliver damage back at the Griffins, minimizing the risk. Proper use of Griffins can thus lead to a significant reduction of friendly casualties. If the enemy unit is capable of attacking Griffins, try to back away from it after each attack - assuming you did not destroy it completely in the initial strike, as you should strive to do. Also always keep your eyes open for a chance to completely bypass your enemies and charge straight at the Ranged Attack units in their rear. These weaker units will surely suffer at the hands of the Griffins. Still, this may be seen as somewhat wasteful, since the Griffins can just as easily spend their time killing strong enemy Melee Attackers. Ability Overview Armor Piercing * Whenever this unit attacks an enemy target (whether with a Melee Attack or Ranged Attack as available) the target's rating is temporarily assumed to be 50% lower than it really is. * This ability makes it easier to cause damage to heavily-armored targets. First Strike * When this unit makes a Melee Attack during its own turn, it delivers its Melee Damage before the target does. * Any enemy killed in the First Strike do not get to deal their own damage to the attacker. * First Strike damage is dealt after Breath Attacks and Thrown Attacks (if any). * First Strike does not work when the unit is Counter Attacking (i.e. when retaliating to an attack by an enemy unit). Experience Table The following table illustrates how Griffins improve as they gain Experience. Any properties that are not listed here do not improve with Experience in any way. * To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Crusade spell must be in play. ** To achieve this level, both the Warlord Retort and the Crusade spell must be in play simultaneously. Average Damage Output The table below details the average amount of damage that each in a Griffins unit will deliver with each type of attack, based on . It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to figure out the chance of hurting that target. Acquisition Griffins are unique to the Nomads, and thus may be produced in any Nomad Town. A town must contain the Fantastic Stable to be able to produce Griffins. Should a town lose its Fantastic Stable, it can no longer produce Griffins until a replacement structure is built. Note that this building requirement means that Griffins produced in towns will always start as "Regular" troops (one free Experience Level), giving them a small but significant bonus above the default unit strength. The Construction Cost of this unit is . Griffins may appear for hire as Mercenaries. They may already have some Experience on being hired, and several units may be hired simultaneously. Hiring these units requires a certain cost in that depends on many different factors. Griffin Mercenaries have the same Upkeep Cost as a normally-constructed unit. Category:Units Category:Normal Units Category:Nomads